Unique partnership creates Senior Fellows pilot program – Herb Weiss

By Herb Weiss, contributing author on growing older points

Buoyed by the success of a pilot Senior Fellows Program, Management Rhode Island (LRI) and Age-Pleasant Rhode Island (AFRI) are hoping to search out the funding to supply one other session in the summertime of 2024.

The preliminary effort “to elevate the voices, information and imaginative and prescient of Rhode Islanders, age 62 and over” ready 25 Senior Fellows to advocate for enhancements that deal with age-elated challenges. The preliminary eight-week program was tuition-free.

The primary crop of Senior Fellows, residents of 13 totally different cities and cities in Rhode Island, ranged in age from 62 to 83. Almost half have been retired.

The concept to develop a senior advocates program got here from Marianne Raimondo, a graduate of LRI’s Core Program, who made the connection between Management Rhode Island and James Burke Connell. Connell is the manager director of Age-Pleasant Rhode Island, an initiative at Rhode Island School that represents a coalition of private and non-private businesses, organizations and people dedicated to wholesome growing older.

Empowering Seniors to change into advocates

Connell proposed the pilot program as a result of, he says, empowering seniors to change into advocates, activists and champions of age-pleasant pondering and practices “will end in a Rhode Island the place older adults thrive and stay their greatest lives.”  He was impressed by related applications in Maine and New Hampshire.

Connell pitched the concept to Michelle Carr, LRI’s govt director, who might simply see the advantages of the proposed three way partnership. One such constructive: Almost a fourth of LRI’s 3000 alumni are 62 years or older, lots of whom are prime candidates for the program.

Extra importantly, Carr provides, LRI and Age-Pleasant RI are each propelled by the assumption that residents of all ages who’re actively engaged of their communities could make lasting impacts.

Age-Pleasant RI raised the funds for the pilot program, and relied on LRI’s “gifted staff” to deal with recruiting, participant choice, curriculum planning, and guiding individuals within the growth of particular person neighborhood commitments, Connell says.

Gilda Hernandez, a 65-yr-previous analysis librarian at Windfall School, participated with two objectives in thoughts.  Because the medical advocate for her 88-yr-previous dad and mom, Hernandez needed to change into an informed caregiver, one who is aware of methods to navigate state businesses to get acceptable companies for them.  She additionally needed to develop advocacy abilities so she will be able to deal with the societal drawback of ageism, particularly within the schooling sector.

The program was “what I anticipated. . . and extra,” says Hernandez, who gave a thumbs as much as the “distinctive programming and high-notch presenters.”

Most session days have been divided into two components, with half targeted on information-constructing round related points, akin to housing, meals insecurity, transportation wants, and well being care.

The opposite half targeted on talent-constructing, akin to writing persuasively,  public talking and community constructing, to allow the Fellows to develop and finally execute their very own Civic Commitments.

Pitching private Civic Commitments on the RI State Home

The Fellows took turns describing their Civic Commitments throughout their ultimate session, held on the RI State Home.  The displays, which included a number of “poignant and pin-drop moments,” have been nicely obtained by the viewers, which included representatives from the state’s Workplace of Fairness and Engagement, and from the AARP,  Home of Hope, Meals on Wheels Rhode Island, and the United Manner.

Senior Fellow Ron Caniglia, 77, from Warwick, applauds the advocacy program for emphasizing the significance of “dwelling in place,” moderately than “growing older in place.”  Actually, his Civic Dedication — to induce the enlargement of Medicare advantages to adequately cowl listening to, imaginative and prescient and dental care — would allow extra older adults “to stay life to the fullest.” 

A retired contractor, Caniglia’s arguments for the enlargement of those advantages are passionate and private.  Listening to loss, if not addressed, can contribute to the breakdown of household and on a regular basis social relationships, he says. This might result in unhealthy isolation.

Teresa DeFlitch, LRI’s director of management growth, says she has excessive hopes that Rhode Island’s first 25 Senior Fellows could have a constructive affect on senior residents all through the Ocean State. They’re anticipated to start their advocacy work inside six months of leaving the program.

We hope, she says, that the Fellows have expanded their information, community, and confidence relating to making a distinction.

It is usually hoped, she provides, that every participant feels extra linked to a supportive and joyful neighborhood, together with their fellow Fellows, and the LRI and Age-Pleasant networks.

“We’re desperate to run the program once more and incorporate suggestions from this yr’s cohort. Working with Age-Pleasant Rhode Island has been great and we’re studying a fantastic deal from the cohort members about what’s affecting them as older adults within the state. It’s been an inspiring and energizing expertise,” DeFlitch says.

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 Herb Weiss, LRI -12, is a Pawtucket-based mostly author who has lined growing older, well being care and medical points for over 43 years.  To buy his books, Taking Cost: Collected Tales on Getting old Boldly and a sequel compiling weekly revealed articles, go to herbweiss.com

Herb Weiss has loved a distinguished 43-yr profession in journalism, incomes a nationwide repute as an professional on growing older, well being care and medical points.  Over 900 articles that he has authored or co-authored have appeared in nationwide, state and native publications and newspapers.

Right this moment, Herb’s weekly newspaper column seems within the Blackstone Valley’s Woonsocket Name and Occasions, a day by day newspaper, and in RINewsToday, a statewide digital information website.  He additionally writes for the Warwick Beacon, Cranston Herald and Senior Digest.

In 2016, he revealed his first e book, a group of his articles for seniors, known as Taking Cost: Collected Tales on Getting old Boldly.  Herb has revealed a further anthology of his collected articles and columns in 2021 known as Taking Cost, Quantity 2: Extra Tales on Getting old Boldly.  He’s a recipient of the 2003 AARP Rhode Island’s Imaginative and prescient Award for his weekly commentary that appeared within the former Pawtucket Occasions.

He’s a two-time recipient (1994 and 1999) of the American School of Well being Care Administrator’s Nationwide Award for his protection of lengthy-time period care points.  He was additionally awarded the Distinguished Alumni’s Award by the Middle for Research in Getting old, North Texas State College, in 1997, for his profession protection of growing older points.  That yr, he was additionally chosen by the distinguished McKnight’s LTC Information to be one in every of its “100 Most Influential Folks” in Lengthy-Time period Care.  

Herb was appointed by 5 governors to serve on the Rhode Island Advisory Fee on Getting old. The appointments have been made by Governors Bruce Sundlun (1994), Lincoln Almond (1999, 2000), Donald L. Carcieri (2005), Gina Raimondo (2016), and Daniel J. McKee (2022). He was additionally appointed by Rhode Island Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio in November 2021 to serve on the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Illness Analysis and Therapy.  

Herb is a 2012 graduate of the Theta II Class of Management Rhode Island.

To buy his books, Taking Cost: Collected Tales on Getting old Boldly and a sequel compiling weekly revealed articles, go to herbweiss.com.